


Shattered

by Crematosis



Category: Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
Genre: M/M, Near Death, angsty Albel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-29
Updated: 2013-07-29
Packaged: 2017-12-21 18:05:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,159
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/903252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crematosis/pseuds/Crematosis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Fayt left Elicoor for the modern world, Albel was determined to kill all his feelings. However, there are some things he can't escape.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shattered

**Author's Note:**

> I kind of love seeing Albel's vulnerable side, once all the prickly exterior has been peeled back. And that doesn't happen unless poor Albel is half-dead. Well, it was a worth sacrifice.

Albel staggered across the field. He was weak, so weak. He put his hand to his stomach and it came away covered in wet, sticky blood. He looked down and frowned. His purple top was darkening with the spreading stain. He had to get back to town and get the bleeding stopped. He gazed about him, his vision blurring. There was only grassy field stretching before him as far as he could see. This wasn’t good.

Albel turned and looked back over his shoulder at the way he had come. He swayed unsteadily and his legs buckled beneath him. He stumbled and tried to regain his balance only to find himself pitching over backwards. He landed hard on his back, the wind temporarily knocked out of. He shut his eyes and heaved a shaky sigh.

How fitting that a dragon should be the end of him. Dragons had always been nothing but trouble ever since his failed ceremony. Albel clenched his claw hand reflexively. At least he had managed to slay the beast despite his dreadful wound. It lay back some distance from where Albel managed to force his uncooperative body. He could go no further. After all his training, he was still mortal. Even he could not escape death.

Albel heard rustling in the grass and he forced open his weary eyes. He blinked a few times to try and clear his vision, but the sight remained the same: the hazy figure of a blue-haired teen smiling down at him gently.

“Fayt,” Albel whispered. It was impossible. Fayt was long gone. After they had defeated Luther and saved the universe, Fayt had gone back to the modern world and had left Albel and Elicoor forever.

Albel cursed his pathetic weakness. Fayt had to be the hallucination of his dying mind. It had been over a year since Fayt had left, but Albel still missed him terribly. They had been lovers for only a brief few months, but apparently that was all the time it took to transform Albel the Wicked into pathetic mush. After all, he had spent most of his life alone and he had become quite attached to Fayt, the one person who had ever really cared about him. After Fayt left, it had been devastating to find himself alone once more.

Albel groaned. He had tried to silence the feelings of loss and loneliness with battles. He had pushed himself to the very limits of his strength so he wouldn’t have any time to think about how abandoned he felt. But it had all failed. He was bleeding to death in the middle of nowhere and in his final moments, his mind had conjured up Fayt’s image.

“Heh,” Albel choked out. “I guess I just can’t escape you?”

“Albel?” the apparition asked softly. The voice sounded distant to Albel’s ears. He was certainly fading fast. Fayt’s gentle touch felt like tiny raindrops against his cheek. It shouldn’t have felt this way.

Albel fought to keep his eyes open for one last glimpse of the face he had loved so much. “At least I got to see you one last time,” he whispered. “My little fool.” He reached up to caress Fayt’s cheek, but found his arm no longer had the strength. Instead, Fayt slipped his hand into Albel’s and Albel’s fingers closed tightly over Fayt’s small hand.

Albel allowed himself a small smile as the darkness came to claim him.

The crimson eyes slid open again sometime later. Albel was surprised to find himself lying in bed. Had it all been a dream? The pain had seemed real. Albel struggled to sit up, wincing. Yes, the pain was definitely real. He looked down at his chest. His purple shirt was gone and in its place was a patchwork of bandages.

A woman in healer’s garb poked her head into the room. “Ah, you’re awake. You’ve been unconscious for nearly a week.” She padded over to Albel’s bedside. “You look much better. When he brought you in, you were a mess.” She put a hand on Albel’s forehead to check his temperature.

Albel swatted her hand away, immediately regretting his action. He grimaced. It hurt almost unbearably to move.

The doctor nodded sagely. “You’re lucky to be alive. We managed to stop the bleeding, but you will still feel weak for some time. We bandaged you all up and your wound should heal soon. However, you also have a cracked rib which will take some time to heal. So, please just lie back down and rest.”

“I’m fine,” Albel growled. “I don’t need to be bedridden.”

The doctor sighed and shook her head sadly. “He said you’d say that.”

“Who?” Albel demanded.

“The young man who brought you in. I don’t know his name.”

Albel resisted the urge to strangle her. It would hurt too much in his present condition. It just wasn’t worth it.

She frowned thoughtfully. “He was about average height with blue hair and green-”

“Damn it!” Albel growled. He clambered out of bed, ignoring the pain shooting through his chest.

“Wait!” the doctor cried. “You’re in no condition to get up.”

“Nonsense,” Albel snapped, his eyes blazing. “That fool has eluded me for far too long. He’s had a week’s head start. He’s probably long gone by now while I’ve been lying here like a pathetic weakling. I’m not going to sit around any longer.”

The doctor’s eyes widened and she pointed out the window. “He’s back. I’m sure he’ll be willing to visit you in your room.”

But Albel was already out the door as soon as he heard Fayt was back. He wasn’t going to let Fayt get away again.

Fayt was walking down the road that ran in front of the healer’s clinic. He had already passed by the clinic and was continuing slowly down the road.

Albel leaned against the doorframe for support. “Come back here and face me, coward,” Albel shouted after him.

To his surprise, Fayt actually stopped and looked back over his shoulder. Fayt’s expression was haunted and full of pain. His green eyes were welling with tears. This was not the Fayt Albel knew. Perhaps their separation had been equally hard on the bluenette.

Albel pushed off from the doorframe and took a few wobbly steps towards Fayt. He was still so weak and his legs collapsed under him. He hissed in pain as his bandaged chest collided with the ground.

Fayt’s anguished look melted into concern. “Albel,” he whispered softly. “You’re hurt. Stay in bed. The healers will take care of you.”

“No,” Albel growled out. He pushed himself to his feet with the help of his sheathed sword. He leaned against the katana like a crutch and took another slow step towards Fayt. “I’m not going to just sit here and let you leave again,” Albel muttered darkly.

Fayt shook his head sadly. “I shouldn’t have come. I’ll only hurt you again when I leave.”

“Then don’t go.” Albel rolled his eyes. Fayt could be so stupid sometimes. He knew they both wanted to be together. Why was he even thinking about leaving again?

Fayt looked down at the ground. A single tear rolled down his face. “I’m not even supposed to be here,” he whispered. “The UP3-”

“Forget all of that,” Albel growled. “You left because of some stupid law?” He tried to draw his sword and succeeded only in unbalancing himself.

Fayt was at his side instantly, helping Albel back to his feet. “Albel, you have to understand. Maria-”

“I’ll kill her if this is here fault,” Albel growled.

Fayt shook his head, his arms still wrapped around Albel, holding him upright. “She thought it wasn’t really love, just a combination of hormones and being cooped up together all the time.”

Fayt sniffled. “Maybe it’s best if you find someone on your own planet.”

Albel scowled. “I’ve been alone before I met you and I’ll be alone again if you leave. No one else on this rotten ball of dirt has ever interested me.”

Fayt wilted. “Maybe they would have if I hadn’t gotten close to you.”

Albel shrugged. “Maybe. But what’s done is done. Look at me,” he said bitterly. “Look how weak I’ve become without you. I almost died. If you hadn’t been there to save me, I probably would have.”

Fayt heaved a sigh. “I just wanted to see you one last time.” He gently pushed back from Albel. “I wasn’t planning on staying. I didn’t even want you to see me. But seeing you so defeated…” His voice trailed off uncertainly and he choked back a sob. “I couldn’t go until I was sure you would be okay.”

Albel frowned as he lost Fayt’s support. He fought to remain standing. “Damn it.”

Fayt grabbed onto Albel before he could fall over again. He buried his face into Albel’s shoulder. “I’ve fucked up so badly,” he whimpered.

Albel raised an eyebrow. Fayt never swore. But then again, Fayt had never been such a pathetic puddle of tears either. But Fayt was the one who was causing himself so much pain. He sighed heavily. How had he fallen in love with someone who could be so stupid?

“Stay with me,” Albel whispered, patting Fayt’s shoulder comfortingly.

Fayt whimpered and shook his head. “I can’t. I’m not supposed to be here.”

Albel’s red eyes hardened with anger. “If you leave again, I’m going to go hunt dragons all by myself again. I’m going to kill as many of them as I can until I kill my feelings for you.”

Fayt whimpered and clutched at Albel. “No, don’t do that. You’re wounded. You won’t last against dragons.”

Albel’s eyes slid shut. He was tired, so tired. “Better to die than live the rest of my life hating myself for losing you again.” He slumped against Fayt weakly.

Fayt’s eyes welled with tears. “Let’s take you back to the doctor’s. You’re too weak to be running around like this. You need to rest.”

Albel opened one eye. “I’ll only go back if you promise not to leave while I’m asleep.”

Fayt nodded. “I promise. I’ll wait for you to get better before I go.”

Albel sighed contentedly and leaned hard against Fayt for support as he slowly trudged back to the doctor’s office. He hadn’t gone far, but his legs felt heavy and it seemed like they were walking an eternity.

“You better be prepared, Fayt,” Albel muttered. “When I get my strength back, you’re not going to be able to run from me. No matter how fast you run, I’ll catch you. No matter where you go, I’ll find you.”

Fayt kissed Albel’s cheek as the warrior finally surrendered and gave into exhaustion. He clumsily gathered Albel into his arms. Albel had always been thin, but now he felt so light and frail. Albel had lowered his guard to let Fayt into his life and now he didn’t know how to put his protective shields back open. He was weak, vulnerable. Leaving him again would only shatter the last tiny pieces of Albel’s broken soul. He had to stay, for a little while at least. Maybe one day when Albel was stable again….who was he kidding? He had missed Albel just as much. Life without Albel had seemed a dull, distant blur passing him by.

Fayt relinquished Albel into the healer’s hands. He checked into the inn close by. Leaving had been a terrible, terrible idea. Seeing Albel again reminded him how hard it was to leave in the first place. It would be even harder to leave again. Even after Fayt had hurt him by leaving, Albel still wanted him back. It was love, not teenage hormones. There was no other explanation.

The next morning, Fayt was kneeling by Albel’s bedside. He watched as the crimson eyes slowly fluttered open and a small smile appeared on Albel’s face. “Heh,” he murmured. “Not a dream.”

Fayt smiled. “No, not a dream. And you’ll never have to doubt that again.”

“Good,” Albel purred. He patted a spot on the bed next to him.

Fayt obediently crawled into bed beside him. “I know it’ll be awhile before you trust me not-”

Albel put a finger over Fayt’s lips. “I trust you now. I know you won’t leave again. You’ve seen what it does to me when you leave.” Albel’s eyes closed again. “Every time I wake up, I want to see you lying next to me.”

Fayt flushed but he obligingly put an arm around Albel. “I thought if I left, we could both be happier living with people from our own worlds. But nobody could ever make me happier than you.”

“Stupid fool,” Albel murmured tiredly. “Cute, but very stupid.” He heaved a heavy sigh and fell back asleep.

Fayt kissed Albel’s forehead and settled down to sleep beside his lover. He vowed that nothing would ever separate them again.


End file.
